Landfill refuse-burying method and apparatus



T. H. FIKSE 3,446,026 LANDFILL REFUSE-BURYING METHOD AND APPARATUS May27, 1969 Sheet Filed Dec. 21, 1967 INVENTOR. rVMA/V Kl. F/KSZ" ATT'ORA/E Sheet ol of 6 T. H. FIKSE May 27, 1969 -BURYING METHOD ANDAPPARATUS LANDFILL REFUSE Filed Dec. 21, 1967 May 27, 1969 T. H. FIKSE3,446,026

I LANDFILL REFUSE-BURYING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed Dec. 21, 1967 Sheeti of 6 FY EKL QQWKAEEQ INVENTOR 77/ 414 ll F/(S'' ATTORNEY 3,446,026LANDFILL REFUSE-BURYING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed Dec. 21. 1967 A T. H.FIKSE May 27, 1969 Sheet MM hm;

Jrraxemey 3,446,026 LANDFILL REFUSE-BURYING METHOD AND APPARATUS 967 T.H. FIKSE May 27, 1969 Sheet Filed Dec. 21, l

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May 27, 1969 T. H. FIKSE 3,446,026

LANDFILL REFUSE-BURYING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed Dec. 21, 1967 Sheetof e INVENTOR TIMAA/ ll. FIL SE @ZLMM ATI'ORN EY United States PatentOflice 3,446,026 Patented May 27, 1969 3,446,026 LANDFILL REFUSE-BURYINGMETHOD AND APPARATUS Tyman H. Fikse, 1459 Loraine St., Enumclaw, Wash.98022 Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 507,124,

Nov. 10, 1965. This application Dec. 21, 1967, Ser.

Int. Cl. E02f 5/12; B65g 6'5/30; B3011 9/00 US. Cl. 61-35 24 ClaimsABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A hollow body of rectangular cross sectionfitting snugly in a trench has a refuse-receiving opening in its upperportion, a refuse-discharge opening in one end opening substantiallyhorizontally and located a substantial distance below therefuse-receiving opening and a closed end opposite the refuse-dischargeopening. A ram in the lower portion of the body is expandable to forcerefuse from the body hollow through the refuse-discharge opening beneatha deep layer of dirt over the refuse-discharge opening and the forcethus exerted to discharge refuse moves the body along the trench awayfrom the refuse-discharge opening. Side flanges projecting forward fromthe closed end of the body shave the trench wall to a size correspondingto the hollow body to enable it to move along the trench. Such sideflanges can be pivoted to be swung for steering the body in the trench.The body can be raised and lowered relative to endless tracks mounted onthe swinging ends of swingable outrigger arms to raise or lower the bodyrelative to the ground surface. A pivoted door of arcuate shape can beswung by a jack toward a second pivoted door above the ram, swingable bya second jack to move its swinging edge along the face of the curveddoor for pressing refuse from the upper portion of the body hollow intothe lower portion in alignment with the ram and refuse-dischargeopening. Pivoted tamping bars mounted on the rear end of the body can beswung to tamp backfill dirt in the trench.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my application Ser. No.507,124, filed Nov. 10, 1965, now abandoned, for LandfillGarbage-Disposal Method and Apparatus.

Disposal of garbage by use of the landfill technique has advantages overthe conventional method of disposing of garbage by landfill. Thelandfill method of disposing of garbage heretofore used extensively hasbeen practiced with varying degrees of sanitation. In the poorest typeof operation a pit of considerable size has been dug, into which garbageand trash has been dumped, the combustible material has been burned, andafter an indefinite time the remaining garbage and trash has beencovered with dirt. Such an operation creates air pollution, producesobjectionable odors, and provides an environment in which scavengervermin thrive.

A better type of landfill garbage-disposal procedure which has beenemployed heretofore has been to provide a natural or dug pit forreceiving garbage and trash, into which such garbage and trash has beendumped, and the combustible material has not been burned. An attempt hasbeen made to compact or consolidate the garbage and trash such as byrunning a large bulldozer over it. Each day, or more frequently, thegarbage and trash deposited during that day or shorter period has thenbeen covered with fill dirt in an attempt to reduce odors and discouragethe operation of scavenger vermin. Even such a garbage disposaloperation has serious objections, however. The principal objections arethat by driving a heavy bulldozer over garbage and trash dumped intoplace a thorough and uniform compaction cannot be obtained, so that thegarbage fill remains quite porous after such compaction. The coveredgarbage is therefore still accessible to vermin, and if combustiblematerial should become ignited inadvertently, the fire can smolderunderground, causing disagreeable odors and air pollution, and can bevery difiicult to extinguish. Morever, as moisture penetrates into thegarbage, vegetable matter can decay, which produces obnoxious odors thatcan exude through the cover material to create a nuisance. Consequently,objections have been raised to landfill garbage-disposal sites beinglocated close to population centers, which has increased the cost ofhauling garbage from population centers to remote disposal sites.

Because of the objections that are common to the operation of disposingof garbage by landfill methods, as discussed above, two other principalmethods have been proposed: first, that of incineration, and, second,that of composting. Incineration requires the construction of expensiveincinerator plants which are difiicult to operate without air pollutionand which require greater operating cost for personnel than landfillgarbage disposal. Composting technique for kitchen gar-bage usaullyrequires that such garbage be separated from trash and must be handledcarefully to prevent the production of objectionable odors. Such anoperation also is expensive as compared to landfill garbage disposal.

Despite the objections discussed above to disopsal of garbage bylandfill methods, such an operation has been so much more economicalthan either incineration or composting that it has been preferred. It isthe principal object of the present invention to eliminate theobjectionable features of garbage disposal by the landfill methods whichhave heretofore been prevalent.

More specifically it is an object to provide garbage and trash landfillin which the refuse material is packed so tightly that it is imperviousto scavenger vermin, and such packing also minimizes settlementfollowing decay of vegetable material.

It is also an object to provide a method for disposing of garbage by useof the landfill technique which will be sanitary and provide a minimumperiod of exposure of the garbage to open air.

At the same time it is an object to provide a landfill method of garbagedisposal which will be economical both for operating expense and in thevolume of garbage and trash which can be accommodated in an excavationof given size.

Such objects can be accomplished by burying garbage and trash deeply inhighly compacted condition and providing a dirt cover over such refuseimmediately. This operation can employ a refuse-burying compactor whichreceives garbage and trash at substantially ground level,

moves such garbage to a location a substantial distance below groundlevel, packs the garbage and trash tightly, and ejects successivecharges of garbage and trash deeply beneath mounded fill dirt.

A further object is to provide a refuse-burying compactor which can bereceived in and moved along a trench and which is able to raise itselfor lower itself relative to the trench and steer itself from side toside to guide itself along a curved trench.

3 from those shown in FIGURE 2, and FIGURE 4 is a similar view withparts shown in still a different position.

FIGURE 5 is a top perspective of a modified type of mechanism includinga refuse-burying compactor having mechanism for raising or lowering thecompactor body and for steering it; FIGURE 6 is a side elevation of suchmechanism with the compactor body raised and FIGURE 7 is a similar viewwith the compactor body in a lower position.

FIGURE 8 is a rear elevation of the mechanism shown in FIGURES 5, 6 and7 and FIGURE 9 is a longitudinal vertical section through suchmechanism.

FIGURE 10 is a horizontal longitudinal section through ram movingmechanism of the compactor and FIGURE 11 is an end elevation of suchmechanism seen from line 11-11 of FIGURE 10.

FIGURE 12 is an enlarged detail section of a portion of the steeringmechanism taken on line 12-12 of FIG- URE 9.

FIGURE 13 is a somewhat diagrammatic top perspective of mechanism foraltering the elevation of the compactor body relative to thetrack-mounting arms.

FIGURES 14, 15, 16 and 17 are somewhat diagrammatic longitudinalvertical sections through the refuseburying mechanism.

The general purpose of the refuse-burying compactor is to compactsuccessive charges of garbage and trash into the lower portion of atrench in which the compactor is lodged and beneath a layer of dirtsufiicient to maintain substantially the degree of compaction of therefuse produced by the compactor. Preferably such trenches are providedin unexcavated ground, and successive trenches may be located quiteclose together, such as being spaced apart approximately one-half thewidth of the trench. The width of the trench may be approximately tenfeet so that the spacing between successive trenches would be five feet.

In the drawings FIGURE 1 shows the beginning of a refuse landfilloperation in which the original grade of ground 1 has been excavated bya hoe H to provide a trench 2. Such trench may be approximately ten feetwide and approximately twenty feet deep, for example. In any event thetrench should be of a width such that the refuseburying compactor bodywill fit down into the trench and project above the initial grade level1 only a small distance, such as a couple of feet. The initial length oftrench excavated must, of course, be at least as great as the over-alllength of the compactor, and the compactor can be lowered into thetrench or dragged lengthwise down into the trench, as may be preferred,in order to start the landfill operation.

The refuse-burying compactor shown in FIGURES l to 4, inclusive,includes a body having an upper deck 3 bridging between upright sidewalls 4, in which deck is provided an opening to a cavity forming arefuse-receiving hopper. At opposite ends of such cavity are shortsloping wall sections 5 and 6 by which refuse is guided toward thecenter of the hopper cavity. Refuse 7 dumped into such hopper cavitydescends to the bottom of the body where it is lodged in a cavity havingone end wall 8, opposite side walls 9, a top wall 10 extending over aportion of its length, and a bottom 11 which constitutes the bottom ofthe entire compactor.

Between the upper guide wall 5 and the end wall 8 of the ifinalcompaction chamber is a door 12 swingably mounted on a hinge 12', theaxis of which extends horizontally and which is located immediatelyabove one edge of the compaction chamber. To a pivot 13 located betweenthe upper and lower edges of the door 12 is secured a fluid pressurejack 14 reacting from an inner wall 15 of the compactor body. The strokeof such jack should be long enough to swing the door throughapproximately 45 between the broken-line position and the solid-lineposition shown in FIGURES 3 and 4.

As shown in FIGURES 3 and 4, the d 12 is curved arcuately with itsconcave side facing a swinging door 16 at the opposite side of therefuse hopper. Such door 16 is mounted on a hinge 16' extendinghorizontally and transversely of the compactor body immediately abovethe compacting chamber and at one side of the opening to such compactingchamber. The curvature of the door 12 is centered at the axis of hinge16' when such door has been swung to its position of closest approach topivot 16', as shown in full lines in FIGURES 3 and 4.

The extent of door 16 radially of its hinge 16' is approximately equalto the spacing between hinge 16' and the concave face of the door 12when it is in its full-line position of FIGURES 3 and 4. The door 16 cantherefore be swung about its hinge 16 from the full-line position shownin FIGURE 3 to the full-line position of FIGURE 4, through an angle ofapproximately into horizontal position coplanar with the upper wall 10of the compaction cavity.

Actuating mechanism to effect swinging of door 16 about its hinge 16 mayreact from a wall 17 of the compactor body and include a fluid pressurejack 18 connected by a pivot 19 to a thrust link 20 which is connectedby pivot 21 to door 16 at a location approximately midway between itshinge 16' and its swinging edge. To guide the pivot 19 during swingingof the door a guide link 22 may be connected between such pivot and afixed pivot 23. The bifurcated linkage can then move between thefullline positions shown in FIGURES 3 and 4, through the broken-lineposition of FIGURE 3.

When the refuse is to be compacted in the compaction chamber with thedoor 16 in the horizontal position shown in FIGURE 4, the end wall 8 canbe reciprocated from the position shown in FIGURE 3 to the position ofFIGURE 4. Such end wall is guided for sliding movement by the skirt 24.The force for moving such end wall can react from a fixed wall of thebody to which fluid pressure jacks 26 are pivoted. Several of thesejacks, such as four of them, can be mounted between the wall 25 and theend wall 8 in parallel arrangement and be interconnected to carry thesame fluid pressure.

When moved by the fluid pressure jacks 26, the end wall 8 becomes a ramwhich will pack the refuse in the compaction chamber tightly so that thecharge of refuse is reduced to the small volume indicated at 7. As eachcharge is compacted, it will be pushed to the right as seen in FIGURES 3and 4 until it is finally extruded through and ejected from the open endof the tunnel 27 beneath the layer of dirt 28 overlying the dischargeend of the extruding tunnel 27. Such dirt layer may be twelve to twentyfeet in depth.

The refuse will be compacted so tightly that after each packingoperation previously compacted charges cannot be reduced appreciablyfurther in volume. Also, charges ejected from the tunnel 27 cannot beslid along the trench bottom appreciably. Consequently, after a chargeof refuse has been compacted to the size illustrated, for example, itcannot be compacted further by the compactor, but the jacks 26 willstill be expanding. During the last increment of jack movement,therefore, the ram 8 will come to a stop relative to the ground, and thebody of the compactor will be moved to the left relative to the groundalong the trench 2 by the force exerted by fluid-pressure jacks 26.During such movement the sloping front wall 29 of the compactor body mayscoop up some dirt from the trench bottom, as indicated in FIG- URES 3and 4. Preferably cutting flanges 30 are provided at each side of thefront plate 29 to shave the side walls of the trench evenly, and thecompactor bottom 11. may have a lip 31 protruding forwardly from it toexcavate the bottom of the trench continuation.

The body of the compactor cannot be expected by itself to excavate thetrench 2 ahead of the compactor. Moreover, as the compactor movesforward along the trench, the body of the compactor would tend to moveout from under the fill dirt behind it. It is necessary,

therefore, to provide equipment supplemental to the compactor toexcavate additional trench ahead of the compactor and to maintain asuflicient quantity of fill dirt behind the compactor as it movesforward. Such fill dirt conveniently can be supplied by spoil excavatedahead of the compactor.

Equipment to transfer spoil from a location ahead of the compactor to alocation behind the compactor may include a belt conveyor 32 driven by amotor 32' as shown in FIGURE 1. Such conveyor preferably isselfcontained and is mobile, having one end supported by wheels 33adjacent to the hoe H and the other end supported in elevated positionby a column 34, the lower end of which is supported by wheels 34. Ahopper 35 may be provided over the lower end of the conveyor into whichdirt excavated from the trench by the hoe H can be dumped. Beneath theupper end of the conveyor is a cross-conveyor 36 extending from theconveyor 32 to a location above and directly behind the rear end of thecompactor.

In order to be able to operate the compactor safely and efficiently itis preferred that the operating controls for the fluid pressure jacks14, 18 and 26 be located in a cab 38 which is mounted at one end of thebodys hopper opening, so that the compactor operator will occupy avantage location from which the entire operation can be viewed withoutdanger to the operator. For this reason it is preferred that the cab belocated on the rear deck of the compactor so that there is no danger ofit being struck by the hoe H.

After the trench 2 has been excavated sufiiciently'so that the compactorcan be placed in it, the actual placement of the refuse for landfillpurposes can be accomplished by two operators, one located in the cab 38to control operation of the compactor and the other in the hoe H toexcavate dirt for extending the trench ahead of the compactor. Actually,in some instances it is probable that there will be an appreciableperiod from time to time between loads of refuse hauled to the site oflandfill, in which case the same operator may operate both the compactorand the hoe by leaving the cab 38 periodically to man the hoe. It isnecessary, however, that the excavation of the trench ahead of thecompactor and the transfer of the spoil from such excavation by theconveyor 32, 36 to a location behind the compactor keep fairly even pacewith the intermittent step-by-step shifting of the compactor along thelength of the trench. Such coordination of the excavation, compactormovement, and piling of the spoil behind the compactor is necessary inorder to maintain a proper depth of fill dirt over the aft end of thetunnel 27 from which the charges of compacted refuse are ejectedsuccessively.

In order to provide the most efiicient operation of the compactor itscapacity is of importance. Thus it is desirable for all of the refusehauled to the landfill site to be transported by trucks T of the samecapacity, and that the capacity of such trucks be not any larger thanthe capacity of the compactor hopper, so that the entire load of a truckT can be compacted by the compactor as a single charge. Such a truckloadof refuse should, however, not fill the hopper of the compactor morethan approximately to the level on the doors 12 and 16 indicated by thetop of the garbage pile 7 in FIGURE 2.

When such a quantity of refuse has been dumped directly by the truck Tinto the hopper of the compactor, the operator may manipulate hiscontrols first to extend the fluid pressure jacks 14 from the positionof FIGURE 2 to that of FIGURE 3. By such extension of jacks 14 the upperedge of door 12 will be swung from the position shown in full lines inFIGURE 2 and in broken lines in FIGURE 3, in which its upper edge is inregistry with the lower edge of the inclined hopper wall 5, into thefullline position of FIGURE 4 in which the concave side of the door 12is disposed tangential to the lower end wall 8 of the hopper and thecurvature of such wall is disposed concentrically of the axis of hinge16' for door 16. Such movement of the jacks 14 will constitute theirmaximum extension.

While maintaining the jacks 14 in their fully-extended positions, theoperator will next etfect extension of the fluid-pressure jacks 18connected to the bifurcated linkage 20, 22, operable to swing the door16 about its hinge 16. By such jack extension the door will be swungfrom the full-line position of FIGURES 2 and 3, in which its swingingedge is in registry with the lower edge of the inclined hopper wall 6,toward the broken-line position shown in FIGURE 3. During such movementthe upper portion of the refuse will be pushed toward door 12 anddownward. As extension of the jacks 18 is continued, the door 16 will beswung from the broken-line position of FIGURE 3 down into the horizontalposition of FIGURE 4. During such movement the swinging edge of the doorWill sweep the curved face of the door 12 and scour refuse from it, sothat by the time the door 16 reaches the horizontal position of FIGURE 4it will have moved all of the refuse into the lower portion of thehopper below the level of walls 10 and 15 and will have compacted therefuse to some extent.

As the door 16 is swung from the full-line position of FIGURE 3 into thehorizontal position of FIGURE 4, it will be seen that the thrust link 20swings through an angle of approximately relative to such door. When thelink is in the position shown in FIGURE 3 in full lines, its thrust willhave one component directed toward the hinge 16' and a second componentdirected perpendicular to the door which effects its swinging. When thedoor has been swung to the broken-line position shown in FIGURE 3, theentire thrust exerted by link 20 will be perpendicular to the door andtending to swing it about the axis of hinge 16'. As the swingingmovement progresses toward the horizontal position of the door shown inFIGURE 4, the thrust components of the link 20 will be one along thedoor away from the hinge 16' and the other perpendicular to the door.The swinging efiiciency of the linkage will, however, be reasonablygreat throughout the entire angle of door swing.

When the door 16 has reached ifs horizontal position of FIGURE 4, itwill be disposed in registry with the horizontal wall sections 10 and 15of the compactor body. The fluid-pressure jacks 26 may then be energizedto drive the ram 8 to the right, as seen in FIGURE 4, without anypossibility of refuse escaping upward from the tunnel, but the refusewill all be packed ahead of the ram 8, as shown in FIGURE 4. During thelast portion of the ram extension, the body of the compactor will beindexed to the left, as seen in FIGURES 3 and 4, a distance equal to thehorizontal thickness of a charge 7' for each stroke of the ram 8.

As soon as the face of ram 8 has passed hinge 16' the operator canreverse the flow of fluid to the jacks 14 and 18 so as to swing thedoors 12 and 16 back into their hopper-forming positions of FIGURE 2. Atthat time a further charge of refuse can be dumped into the hopper, eventhough the ram has not been retracted by the jacks 26, because the ramskirt 24 will support any garbage deposited between doors 12 and 16 andprevent it from moving down into the body tunnel behind the ram head 8.During operation of the compactor care must be exercised to preventrefuse from being deposited into the compactor when the doors 12 and 16are not in hopper-forming position, that is, when either of the doors 12and 16 is in a position with its upper edge out of registry with itsrespective stationary upper wall 5 or 6.

As soon as the ram head passes the hinge 16 during its movement to theleft, any refuse above the tunnel will begin to fall into the tunnelfrom the upper portion of the hopper, but this will not beobjectionable. Such operation of the compactor receiving part or all ofa fresh charge of refuse before the packing ram 8 has been completelyretracted will expedite operation of the compactor.

It is desirable for the upper stationary sides and 6 of the hopper to beof sufiicient length so that a complete charge of refuse can bedeposited in the hopper above the level of the horizontal wall 10,without the hopper overflowing.

As each charge of packed refuse is ejected from the aft end of thetunnel 27 beneath the layer of fill dirt 28, the weight of such filldirt will maintain the refuse in compacted condition. Usually the depthof such fill dirt layer will exceed to some extent the depth of thetrench because such fill dirt is provided by spoil from the trenchexcavation. The bottom of the fill dirt layer will, of course, beelevated above the bottom of the trench by the depth of the compactedrefuse, and because such spoil will be less dense than the dirt in thetrench right-of-way prior to excavation, the total depth of spoil wouldbe considerably greater than the depth of the trench if it were not forthe fact that above the original grade 1 of the ground the spoil willspread transversely of the length of the trench to provide a base forthe mound 37 which is of a width considerably in excess of the width ofthe trench in order to provide the necessary angle of repose foropposite sides of the spoil mound. A reasonable time after completion ofthe landfill operation in a particular section of the trench, the moundof spoil above the original grade 1 can be leveled by a bulldozer toprovide a new ground surface elevation. Because of the great density ofthe packed refuse, settling of the new ground level will be much lessthan in conventional landfill garbage-disposal operations, if there isany settlement at all.

Thus it will be seen that during the operation of the compactor a chargeof refuse is confined in the tunnel of the compactor between the walls9, 10, 11 and 16, and is packed in the bottom portion of the trench bymovement horizontally of the trench effected by rearward movement of thepacking ram 8. The refuse thus packed is confined in the tunnel behindthe hopper with little opportunity for recovering any of its lost volumeas the compactor tunnel progresses incrementally to the left, as seen inFIGURES 3 and 4, relative to such packed refuse charges. As the tunnelmoves beyond each successive charge, the confinement of the refuseeffected by the tunnel will be replaced by confinement of such refusecharges by the fill dirt in the upper portion of the trench and abovethe trench. Consequently, the compaction of the confined refuse chargeswill be maintained in the underground deposit of refuse after thecompactor has progressed away from such charges along the trench.

It is desirable for the hollow body of the compactor to fit quite snuglyin the trench. The portion of the trench ahead of the hollow body caneven be somewhat norrower than the width of the body so that, as thebody is pushed ahead in the trench by reaction from the force urging thepacked refuse through the tunnel and out of its end 27, the side flangesand lower lip 31, forming blades, will shave the sidewalls and bottom ofthe trench so that the body will fit the trench closely. The sidewalls 4of the body will then support the trench walls and prevent them fromcaving in even if the trench should be partially filled with water orthe trench walls should have a caving tendency. The sidewalls 4, bottom11 and front wall 29 of the body preferably are joined in watertightrelationship and, in most instances, the successive charges of refuse 7'will be packed in the tunnel sufliciently tightly to prevent influx ofwater to the body hollow through the tunnel. Even if groundwater shouldpartially fill the tunnel, therefore, appreciable water should not leakinto the body.

Usually the refuse deposited in the upwardly opening upper portion ofthe body hollow is reasonably dry and, consequently, can be packed tooccupy a small proportion, such as from 10 to of its original volume.Watersoaked garbage and paper products would be much less compressible.It is entirely practical, therefore, to use the compactor of the presentinvention to force compacted refuse into the bottom portion of a trenchbelow groundwater level.

Instead of lowering the garbage-disposal apparatus into a trench 2 by aderrick of some type or dragging the apparatus down into the trench, asdiscussed with reference to the compactor of FIGURES 1 to 4, thecompactor can be of the self-elevating type, as shown in FIGURES 5 to17. Apparatus of this type can be supported by outrigger endless tracks39 which will bear on the surface of the ground 1 at opposite sides of atrench 2 dug for the purpose of accommodating the apparatus. While suchtracks could be powered so that the apparatus could actually beself-propelled, such powering of the tracks would only be required toshift the apparatus from one trench location to another. Consequently,it is preferred that the tracks be of the idler type. The apparatus canbe supported by such tracks, however, or towed such as by the hoe Hshown in FIGURE 1 or by a bulldozer B such as shown in FIGURE 17.

In order to be able to raise and lower the apparatus by use of a singleset of tracks, it is preferred that each endless track support theapparatus substantially at its center of gravity. For this purpose, thetrack mounting and guiding mechanism 40 is mounted by a single pivot 41at its center on the swinging end of an outrigger arm 42 attached by apivot 43 to one end portion of the apparatus. As shown in FIGURES 5, 6and 7, the arm 42 may extend from the track 39 upward to a locationadjacent to the cab 38. For access from the ground to such cab, steps 44are mounted on the upper side of the arm 42 so that an operator can stepup onto the track 39 and from the track ascend such steps to the cab.

Operating machinery for the apparatus is located principally at the sideof the hopper 4 opposite the control cab 38. To afford easy access tosuch machinery and auxiliary outrigger arm 45 can be disposed inrelationship crossing the arm 42. The lower end of such auxiliary armcan rest on a projection 46 extending outwardly from the outer side ofthe arm 42 generally centrally between its ends. Steps 47 on theauxiliary arm 45 ascend from the central portion of the arm 42 up to thedeck 3 above the machinery pit. The operator can reach such decktherefore either from the ground by ascending the lower portion of thesteps 44 and then ascending the steps 47 or he can reach such deck fromthe cab 38 by descending the upper portion of the steps 44 on arm 42 andthen ascending the steps 47 on arm 45.

The elevation of the compactor body relative to the tracks 39 can bealtered by changing the position of the swinging end of arms 42elevationally relative to the respective sides 4 of the compactor. Forthis purpose each side wall of the compactor has in it a recess 48, oneedge of which forms an arcuate ledge 49 shown in FIGURE 13 concentricwith pivot 43. Along this ledge a shoe 50 mounted on the swinging end ofarm 42 can be moved. This shoe carries one or more pulleys 51 of lineand pulley rigging connected between the compactor body and arm 42 forthe purpose of supporting the compactor body from the arms 42 and,consequently, from the tracks 39, as shown best in FIGURES 6 and 13.

The rigging is attached to the lower portion of the body such as by aline end anchor and one or more pulleys 52 located in the recess 48.Additional guide pulleys 53 and 54 can be mounted at convenientlocations on the body to guide the line 55 from the tackle blocks 51 and52 to a winch drum 56 located in the machinery pit in the upper portionof the body, as shown in FIGURE 6. Rotation of such drum to reel in theline 55 will cause the tackle to draw the shoe 50 toward the anchoredcomponents 52 of the tackle so that the body will be raised relative tothe swinging end of arm 42 from a position such as shown in FIGURE 7toward a position such as shown in FIGURE 6. Conversely, if line 55 ispaid out from drum 56, the body can settle relative to the swinging endsof arms 42 from a position such as shown in FIG- 9 URE 6 to a positionsuch as shown in FIGURE 7 or beyond. By such manipulation, the compactorbody can be raised out of a trench or lowered into a trench.

Although by proper manipulation of a line and pulley rigging connectingthe compactor body and the arms 42, as described above, the angularrelationship between such arms and body can be altered controllably, thebody can rock freely relative to the tracks 39 about pivots 41connecting the mounting structures of the tracks and the respective armsby locating such pivots so that their axes are disposed substantially inthe same vertical plane as the center of gravity of the body. The bodycan be raised and lowered in a substantially level attitude without anyground contact, but maintaining a portion of the bottom of the body incontact with the ground, such as the inclined bottom of an upwardly ordownwardly sloping trench, promotes longitudinal tilting stabilizationof the body with respect to the axis of pivots 41. While such pivot axisshifts longitudinally of the body to some extent between extreme raisedand extreme lowered positions of the body, generally represented inFIGURES 6 and 7, suitable ballasting may be provided to trim the body toa level position by shifting its center of gravity if desired. The ramhead 8 and its associated drive mechanism may serve as such ballastingby shifting it longitudinally of the body relative to the center ofgravity of the components of the machine suspended from pivots 41. Animportant attribute of the pivot mounting of the tracks is that thetracks and body can tilt freely relative to each other, such as when thetracks travel over uneven ground, or even on opposite sides of a trenchextending along a hillside, or when the body is moving down into or upout of a trench along a sloping ramp section.

Retainers 57 for shoe 50, as shown in FIGURES and 6, may be arrangedalong the arcuate ledge 49 of recess 48 for the purpose of preventingmovement of the shoe sidewise out of engagement with the ledge. Suchretainers have pointed ends and are spaced apart sufiiciently tominimize resistance to movement of the compactor body along the trenchby engagement of such retainers with the trench wall. Resistance tomovement of the body along a trench is also reduced by forming the lowerportion 58 of the front end wall as an upwardly and rearwardly inclinedscooping surface. Such scooping surface engaging a substantial amount ofdirt in the trench ahead of the body, as shown in FIGURES 14, 15, 16 and17, will hold the front end of the body down so that it does not tend torise out of the ditch as the compactor body moves forward. The centralportion 59 of the front end wall can be vertical and the upper portion60 of the wall can even slope forwardly and upwardly from the verticalsection.

If it is desired to alter the depth of the trench, it is only necessaryfor the hoe H to dig the trench preceding the compactor body eitherdeeper or shallower. The dirt ahead of the compactor body shown inFIGURES 14 to 17 as bearing on the inclined front end scooping surface58 is loose dirt and the bottom of the trench would be compactedrelatively hard. The compactor body is heavy and, consequently, if theditch is dug so that its bottom gradually slopes downward, the weight ofthe compactor body would hold its bottom 11 in contact with the bottomof the trench unless the rigging described above were anchored so thatthe weight of the body was supported by the tracks 39. Alternatively, ifit were desired to raise the body, such adjustment could be effected byreducing the depth of the trench dug by the hoe H to provide an upwardlysloping trench bottom. -Movement of the compactor body up such slopecould be assisted by reeling in line 55 progressively or incrementallyso that the compactor body is raised relative to tracks 39 as theapparatus moves along the trench 2.

Neither the weight of the compactor body nor the rigging for varying theelevation of the body relative to the tracks 39 will assist in swingingthe body laterally.

It may be desirable, however, to curve the refuse-receiving trenchgradually in one direction or the other for some reason. The sidecutting flanges 30 shown in FIGURES 1 to 4 would clean the width of thetrench to facilitate movement of the compactor body along it, but wouldnot assist in swinging the body for the purpose of altering its course.In the apparatus of FIGURES 5, 6, 7 and 9, wings 61 are mounted on theupright edges of the front end of the comparator body, which haveoutwardly and forwardly sloping vanes 62. Such wings are mounted bypivots 63 shown in FIGURE 12 to tilt about an upright axis, both for thepurpose of altering the degree of projection of the vanes transverselybeyond the sides of the compactor body and for altering the angle ofsuch vanes. The degree to which such wings are tilted relative to thebody can be altered by extending or contracting fluid pressure jacks 64,shown best in FIGURE 12.

When the jacks 64 for the wings on both sides of the front end of thecompactor body are fully contracted, the wings will be in the positionshown in FIGURE 12 so that the leading edges of the vanes will simplyserve as trench-scouring cutting edges having an action corresponding tothe action of the cutting flanges 30 on the compactor body shown inFIGURES l to 4. If the jacks 64 at one side of the body are extended,however, they will tilt their wing 61 to a corresponding degree so thatthe cutting edge of the vane 62 will be shifted outwardly to a greateror lesser extent beyond the side of the compactor body. Such vaneleading edge can then engage a side wall of the trench 2. The resistancecreated by the digging action of such vane edge will retard movement ofthat side of the compactor body so that as the apparatus moves forwardthe compactor body will swing to a greater or lesser extent toward theside on which the wing was swung.

It will, of course, be necessary for the hoe digging the trench ahead ofthe refuse-burying apparatus to dig it curved in the direction which itis desired to have the compactor body turned. The appropriate jacks 64will then be extended so that the wing 61 will tilt to dig its vane 62into the convexly curved side of the trench. This action will have theduel effect of increasing the resistance to movement of that side of thecompactor body and, also, will remove dirt from that side of the trenchto provide additional clearance for the compactor body so that it canturn. Movement of the compactor body along the trench will be effectedby expulsion of compacted refuse from the rear end of the body asdescribed in connection with FIGURES 2, 3 and 4. As has been mentioned,the tracks 39 preferably are simply idler tracks and do not provide anypropulsive effort to move the apparatus.

While the principle of propulsion for the apparatus shown in FIGURES 5to 17 is the same as that utilized for the apparatus shown in FIGURES 1to 4, the actual refuse compacting and expelling mechanism provided forthe apparatus of FIGURES 5 to 17 is somewhat different from that used inthe apparatus of FIGURES 1 to 4. In the compactor of FIGURES 9, l0 and14 to 17, the end wall 8 of the tunnel compaction chamber still ejectsthe finally compacted refuse rearwardly out of the tunnel between thetop wall 10 and the bottom wall 11. Such end wall 8 is preferablysubstantially square, as shown in FIGURE 8, and has a skirt 24 extendingforwardly from it. In the mechanism of this compactor, however, no doorsare provided in the front wall 5' or in the rear wall 6' of therefuse-receiving hopper. Instead, the hopper end walls 5' and 6 slopemore steeply than the end walls of the hopper shown in FIGURES 2 and 3and the bottom opening of the hopper is longer.

Because of the longer opening in the bottom of the refuse-receivinghopper, it is necessary for the compacting end wall 8 to travel acorrespondingly greater distance. Instead of using single-acting jacksto move the end wall 8 as in the apparatus of FIGURES 2, 3 and 4,therefore,

a compound jack structure shown in FIGURES 9, and 11 is used. Thehousing of this compound jack is a cluster of interconnected cylindersincluding a central cylinder 65 and two smaller side cylinders 66. Suchcylinders are proportioned so that the crosssectional area of eachcylinder 66 is approximately half of the cross-sectional area ofcylinder 65. A plunger 67 can be projected from one end of cylinder 65and its end 68 is attached to the compacting end wall 8. Such plungercan be projected by introducing fluid under pressure into the cylinder65 to act on the piston 69 on the inner end of plunger 67.

From each side cylinder 66 a plunger 70 can be projected in thedirection opposite the direction of projection of plunger 67. The outerends 71 of these plungers can be anchored to the front wall 58 of thecompactor body. Such plungers are projected by supplying fluid underpressure between the cylinders 66 and the pistons 72 on the inner endsof the plungers 70. It will be seen in FIGURE 9 that projection ofplungers 70 from cylinders 66 will move the body of the compound jacktoward the right relative to the compactor body as seen in FIGURE 9. Iffluid under pressure is supplied simultaneously to cylinder 65, plunger67 will be moved to the right relative to the compound jack body so thatsuch plunger will move twice as far as the cylinders relative to thecomparator body.

The combined lengths of the plunger 67 and each of the plungers 70 issuch that the compacting end wall 8 can move from a position in registrywith the lower edge of hopper wall 5 into the full-line position of endwall 8, as seen in FIGURE 9. When such wall is at its extreme leftposition, the entire bottom of the refuse-receiving hopper will be openso that refuse can drop into the compaction passage onto the bottom 11of the compactor body. When sufficient refuse has been dumped into thehopper so that virtually the entire portion of the body hollow below thelower edges of the hopper walls 5' and 6' and rearwardly of the loweredge of wall 5 is filled with refuse, fluid under pressure may besupplied to the cylinders 65 and 66 for the purpose of projecting thecompacting end wall 8 into the position of FIGURE 9. The progressivemovement of the compound jack, compacting end wall and associatedmechanism is illustrated in FIG- URES 14 to 17.

In the starting position of FIGURE 14 a charge of refuse has been forcedthrough the tunnel far enough so that the flaring exit walls 27' shownin FIGURE 9 will prevent the compacted refuse from expanding back intothe tunnel for any substantial distance. In FIGURE 14 the compacting endwall 8 has been retracted, refuse has fallen into the tunnel and theparts are in a relationship ready for the next compacting operation.Supply of fluid under pressure to the cylinders 65 and 66 project theplungers 67 and 70 to move the compacting end wall 8 across the bottomopening of the hopper from the position of FIGURE 14 to that of FIGURE15. During such movement refuse cannot drop into the tunnel behind thecompacting end wall 8 because the skirt 24 of the end wall has an uppersurface 73 which moves across the bottom opening of the hopper and whenit has moved part way across such opening, it will draw a second closureplate 74 after it because of the interengagement of flanges 75 carriedby the trailing edge of plate 73 and leading edge of plate 74, as shownin FIGURE 9.

As the compacting wall 8 is moved by further extension of the plungers67 and 70 from the position shown in FIGURE to that of FIGURE 16, therefuse will be further compacted to some extent, but primarily thecompactor body will be moved through an incremental movement along thetrench toward the left. During this movement the cover plates 73 and 74will be moved farther to the right relative to the bottom opening of thehopper into the extreme position, as shown in FIGURE 16. Each of thecylinders 65 and 66 is double acting so that by supplying fluid underpressure to the opposite ends of these cylinders, the compound jack canbe contracted from the fully-extended position of FIGURE 16 to thefully-contracted position of FIGURES l0 and 17. Such retracting movementof the compacting wall also moves the hopper bottom cover plates 73 and74 into their contracted overlapping relationship shown in FIGURE 17 sothat again the entire bottom opening of the hopper is in communicationwith the compaction tunnel.

The closure plate 74 is guided for reciprocation by tracks 76 shown inFIGURE 9. This closure plate is slid in one direction or the other bymovement of plate 73. When this plate moves sufliciently far to theright, as seen in FIGURES 9 and 15, the flanges will engage to drawplate 74 to the right as plate 73 continues to move until plate 74 hasbeen pulled into the extreme right position shown in FIGURE 16. When thecompound jack begins to contract, however, plate 74 will not begin tomove to the left immedittely. On the contrary, this plate will remainsubstantially stationary until plate 73 has moved to the left intoposition virtually completely under plate 74. The left end of plate 73will then contact flange 77 projecting downwardly from the left end ofplate 74. Continued movement of plate 73 to the left will then push onflange 77 to move plate 74 from the position of FIG- URE 16 to theposition of FIGURE 17 retracted out of the hopper bottom opening.

The compactor body of the apparatus shown in FIG- URES 5 to 17,inclusive, is moved incrementally to the left along the trench by theforce exerted by the compound jack as it forces compacted refusegenerally from the position of FIGURE 15 to that of FIGURE 16 asdiscussed above. The tunnel through which the compacted refuse isejected is long enough so that backfill dirt can be piled on the topwall 10 of the tunnel as well as behind its ejection opening, as shownin FIGURE 15 When the compactor body is moved forward in the trench tothe left, a cavity will be opened between the face of the pile ofbackfill dirt and the rear end of the compactor body above the tunnel.Into this cavity additional dirt can fall or be pushed either bytransfer of spoil by the conveyor 32 from the hoe H, as shown in FIGURE1, or supplied from any source by a bulldozer B. In order to provide acompact layer of backfill dirt in the trench over the discharge openingof the tunnel, suitable packing mechananism can be provided.

An internal combustion engine 78 located in the machinery pit forward ofthe refuse-receiving hopper can be used to provide fluid under pressureeither as compressed air or to generate electricity for operatinghydraulic pumps or both. The packing mechanism, also, can use such powersource. As shown in FIGURES 8, 9 and 16, in particular, a row of packingbars 79 may be provided in the rear end of the compactor body above therefuse discharge tunnel, which are mounted by pivots 80 at their lowerends to swing about a horizontal axis. The upper ends of such packingbars can be swung rearwardly by fluid pressure jacks 81 to tamp thebackfill dirt as indicated in FIGURE 16. A wedge-shaped void will thusbe provided, as indicated in FIGURE 17, over which additional fill dirtmay be pushed by the bulldozer B to fall into the cavity formed when thecompactor body is moved forward the next increment.

I claim:

1. A landfill refuse-burying method which comprises placing in a grounddepression a body having an interior hollow, a refuse-receiving openingin the upper portion of the body communicating with its interior hollowand an underground refuse-discharge opening communicating with suchinterior body hollow, placing a deep layer of dirt over suchrefuse-discharge opening, depositing refuse into the interior hollow ofsuch body through such refuse-receiving opening, and ejecting the refusefrom such body hollow through such refuse-discharge opening beneath suchdeep layer of dirt over it.

2. The refuse-burying method defined in claim 1, including compactingthe refuse in the interior body hollow in successive charges, andejecting such compacted charges through the refuse-discharge opening insuccession beneath such deep layer of dirt and thereby maintaining suchejected refuse in compacted condition by such dirt layer.

3. The refuse-burying method defined in claim 1, including excavating atrench to form the ground depression in which the body is placed, therefuse-discharge opening being through an upright wall of the body, andprogressively moving the body along such trench in the direction awayfrom the refuse-discharge opening as refuse is ejected from the interiorbody hollow through the refuse-discharge opening.

4. The refuse-burying method defined in claim 3, in which force isapplied from the hollow body to exert pressure on the refuse toward therefuse-discharge opening in the body and such force simultaneouslyejects refuse through such refuse-discharge opening and correspondinglyeffects movement of the body along the trench.

'5. The refuse-burying method defined in claim 3, including compactingthe refuse in the interior body hollow in successive charges, andsimultaneously ejecting such compacted charges through therefuse-discharge opening in the body in succession and moving the bodyintermittently along the trench step-by-step in accordance with suchejection of successive compacted charges of refuse.

6. A landfill refuse-burying method which comprises excavating a trench,placing in such trench a body elongated lengthwise of such trench andhaving an interior hollow and a refuse-ejecting tunnel opening at oneend thereof located a substantial distance below the top of the trench,placing fill dirt in the trench above the tunnel opening, placing refusein the interior hollow of the body, and pressing such refuse through thetunnel and out through the refuse-ejecting tunnel opening beneath thefill dirt in the trench above such opening.

7. The refuse-burying method defined in claim 6, in which force isapplied from the hollow 'body to the refuse in pressing refuse out ofthe refuse-ejecting tunnel opening, and as resistance to movement of therefuse increases to a value greater than the resistance to movement ofthe hollow body along the trench such force effects movement of thehollow body along the trench in the direction away from the tunnelopening.

8. A landfill refuse-burying method which comprises excavating a trench,placing snugly in such trench a body having an interior hollow and arefuse-receiving opening in the upper portion thereof communicating withits hollow, an underground refuse-discharge opening in one endcommunicating with such interior hollow of the body and a closed endopposite the refuse-discharge opening end, and exerting pressure onrefuse in the hollow body in a substantially horizontal direction towardthe refuse-discharge opening in the body and thereby simultaneouslyejecting refuse from the body through such refuse-discharge opening andmoving the hollow body along the trench, closed end first, with thesides ofthe hollow body sliding along the side walls of the trench.

9. The landfill refuse-burying method defined in claim 8, in which thehollow body has side digging blade means on its closed end, and movingthe digging blade means in contact with the trench wall by movement ofthe hollow body along the trench and thereby shaving the trench wallcontour to a cross-sectional size corresponding to that of the hollowbody to enable the hollow body to move along the trench.

10. The landfill refuse-burying method defined in claim 9, includingdeflecting the digging blade means on one side of the hollow body toengage the trench wall on that side of the body and produce a resistanceto movement of such side of the hollow body along the trench greaterthan the resistance to movement of the other side of the hollow body andthereby effecting swinging of the hollow body to steer it along a curvedtrench.

11. A landfill refuse compactor comprising an elongated body having aninterior hollow, having a refusereceiving opening in the upper portionof said body and communicating with the interior hollow of said body andhaving a refuse-discharge opening in one end of said body communicatingwith such interior body hollow, opening substantially horizontally andlocated a substantial distance below said refuse-receiving opening, theend of said body opposite said refuse-discharge opening end beingclosed, digging blade means on said closed body end, and compactingmeans in said body movable toward such refuse-discharge opening to presstoward it refuse having a greater resistance to movement out of thehollow body than the resistance of the hollow body to movement along atrench and thereby moving said digging blade means along the trench.

12. The refuse compactor defined in cairn 11, in which the closed end ofthe body includes a front surface sloping forwardly and downwardly andthe digging blade means includes flange means projecting forwardly frommarginal portions of the closed body end beyond said sloping surface andhaving forwardly directed digging edges.

13. The refuse compactor defined in claim 11, and side wings, pivotmeans mounting a side wing on each side of the closed end of the body,and actuating means for swinging each side wing about its pivot meansrelative to the body.

14. The refuse compactor defined in claim 11, in which the digging blademeans includes flange means projecting forwardly from marginal portionsof the interior hollow of the body having forwardly directed diggingedges.

15. A landfill refuse compactor comprising an elongated body having aninterior hollow, having a refusereceiving opening in the upper portionof said body communicating with its interior hollow and having arefusedischarge opening in one end of said body communicating with suchinterior body hollow, opening substantially horizontally and located asubstantial distance below such refuse-discharge opening, compactingmeans in said body movable toward such refuse-discharge opening to presstoward it refuse compacted by said compacting means, outriggerground-engaging means attached to said body, and elevation-alteringmeans connecting said outrigger ground-engaging means and said body foreffecting relative elevational movement thereof.

16. The landfill refuse compactor defined in claim 15 in which theground-engaging means are a plurality of endless tracks, and attachingmeans attaching said respective tracks to the body including arms havingpivots spaced lengthwise thereof, one pivot connecting its arm to thebody and another pivot connecting its arm to an endless track means.

17. The landfill refuse compactor defined in claim 16, theelevation-altering means being connected between each outrigger arm andthe body for swinging such arm relative to the body about the pivotconnecting such arm and body.

18. The landfill refuse compactor defined in claim 15, in which theelevation-altering means includes line-andpulley rigging.

19. The landfill refuse compactor defined in claim 15, in which anoutrigger ground-engaging means is pro vided on each side of thecompactor body and the elevation-altering means is operable to effectindependent elevational relative movement between the body and therespective outrigger ground-engaging means on opposite sides thereof.

20. A landfill refuse compactor comprising an elongated body having aninterior hollow, a refuse-receiving opening in the upper portion of saidbody communicating with its interior hollow and a refuse-dischargeopening in one end of said body communicating with such interior bodyhollow, opening substantially horizontally and located a substantialdistance below said refuse-receiving opening, compacting means in saidbody movable toward such refuse-discharge opening to press toward itrefuse compacted in such interior body hollow, and packing meansexteriorly of said body and above such refuse-discharge opening andincluding a plurality of bars having their lengths extending generallyupright, pivot means pivotally mounting the lower ends of said bars onsaid body, and actuating means engaged between said body and saidpacking bars and operable to swing said packing bars about said pivotmeans for tamping fill dirt overlying such refuse-discharge opening.

21. A landfill refuse compactor comprising an elongated body having aninterior hollow, a refuse-receiving opening in the upper portion of saidbody communicating with its interior hollow and a refuse-dischargeopening in one end of said body communicating with such interior bodyhollow, opening substantially horizontally and located a substantialdistance below said jack having 2. refuse-engaging member, a cluster ofinterconnected cylinders, a plunger projectable in one direction from acylinder of said cluster to press against said body and a plungerprojectable from another cylinder of said cluster in the oppositedirection engageable with said refuse-engaging member to effect movementthereof.

22. The landfill refuse compactor defined in claim 21, in which thecluster of cylinders includes a first cylinder from which a plunger isprojecta ble in one direction and a plurality of plungers projectable inthe opposite direction from cylinders the combined cross-sectional areaof which is substantially equal to the cross-sectional area of saidfirst cylinder.

23. The landfill refuse compactor defined in claim 22, in which thecluster of cylinders includes two cylinders disposed symmetrically onopposite sides of the first cylinder.

24. A method of producing landfill by burying refuse with apparatusincluding a body having an interior hollow, a refuse-receiving openingin the upper portion of the body communicating with its interior hollowand a refusedischar-ge opening for discharging refuse generallyhorizontally therethrough from such interior body hollow, which methodcomprises excavating a trench, disposing such body with itsrefuse-discharge opening in such trench, depositing refuse into theinterior hollow of such body through such refuse-reciving opening, andapplying, on refuse in the interior hollow of the body, force directedtoward the refuse-discharge opening and reacting from the body fordischarging refuse through such refusedischarge opening beneath a deeplayer of dirt adjacent to the body above such refuse discharge openingand, by reaction to pressure of the refuse being discharged againstrefuse previously discharged, simultaneously effecting movement of thebody along the trench.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,013,675 12/1961 Schonrock214-41 3,277,850 10/1966 Jackson et a1 -95 X 3,289,572 12/1966 Pioch214-41 X 3,352,115 11/1967 Jurisich 61-35 JACOB SHAPIRO, PrimaryExaminer.

US. Cl. X.R.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Certificate Patent No. 3,446,026 PatentedMay 27, 1969 Tyman H. Fikse Application having been made by Tyinan H.Fikse, the inventor named in the patent above identified, for theissuance of a certificate under the provisions of Title 35, Section 256,of the United States Code, adding the name of David A. Johnston as a.joint inventor, and a showing and proof of facts satisfying therequirements of the said section having been submitted, it is this 20thday of January 1970, certified that the name of the said David A.Johnston is hereby added to the said patent as a joint inventor with thesaid Tyman H. Fikse.

LUTRELLE F. PARKER Law Examiner.

